Ethereum’s Rollup Mania: When Layer 2 Solutions Become the Problem

Another day, another rollup—except this time, Ethereum might be better off without it. The network’s Layer 2 ecosystem is bloated, fragmented, and increasingly resembling the very scalability issues it was meant to solve.

Here’s the irony: rollups were supposed to be Ethereum’s salvation. Instead, they’re turning into a circus of competing chains, each with its own tokenomics ponzi—sorry, ’ecosystem incentives.’

The real test? Whether Ethereum can scale its culture of innovation faster than its gas fees. Until then, maybe skip the next rollup announcement—your wallet will thank you.

Letting all kinds of ideas grow and stop policing

Ethereum’s community and leadership need to be more open to ingenuity and crazy ideas, even those that might seem risky or just for fun. Not every new project needs to be a world-changing infrastructure or technology. Sometimes, the apps that attract a lot of users are the ones that are more experimental or focused on new trends. We should appreciate the energy and interest these kinds of apps bring to the ecosystem. The recent success of ‘degen’ focused apps like Pump.fun and platforms alike show that a big user base is interested in these kinds of experiments.

Solana’s success, as evidenced by the rapid user acquisition of platforms like Pump.fun, shows us this. They have supported projects, even those just starting or exploring new areas, leading to the network’s adoption and growth.

Ethereum can learn from this by not being too quick to dismiss these kinds of projects and recognizing their potential to grow the overall user base.

Communication with everyday user

Ethereum focuses on technical improvements as a team; while these are important for the developer community, they don’t mean much to regular internet users or degens looking for new and exciting opportunities or experiences. Specifically, people want to know what they can do with all these new primitives or apps.

Other networks are doing a better job of showcasing apps built on them, which are even easy to use for your grandmother and rewarding for many. Focusing on supporting these money legos has attracted talent, users & network usage.

Clearly, Ethereum lacks this. I criticize Ethereum because I am an avid supporter and user of it.

Making app growth a priority

We need to actively work on getting more apps built and more users to try them. This means having a clear plan beyond just improving the technology.

One way to do this is by creating a special team within the Ethereum ecosystem that focuses on helping new apps grow across the spectrum, from serious tools to fun experiments. One of the most important goals for this team WOULD be to find promising projects and understand what they need help with. A focused effort to help apps on Ethereum succeed while not being directly controlled by the Ethereum Foundation for day-to-day operations would create space for builders to experiment.

Ethereum has a strong base and much potential to revitalize the ecosystem. By being more open to all kinds of apps, supporting them, and creating a special team to help apps grow, Ethereum can get its app ecosystem going again.

Ethereum’s future success depends not only on its technology but also on the number of useful and fun apps people can actually use.

Nirbhik Jangid is a seasoned builder and growth leader in the web3 space. As the founder of The Dapp List, he has created a go-to platform for discovering promising projects and dapps. His experience also includes significant contributions to Polygon (Matic), where he played a key role in early growth.